Quality Evaluation of Fine Dust Management Mobile Applications

Abstract

Objectives: This study aims to identify the contents characteristics of fine dust management apps currently released in Korea and evaluate the quality level. Methods: We found 400 apps to search for keywords related to fine dust, and 30 apps that meet certain criteria were selected as the final research subjects. It describes the main content status of 30 apps. Additionally, we evaluate the quality level of the app by utilizing the mobile application rating scale (MARS). We analyze the correlation between MARS Score, consumer score, and number of reviews. Results: Most fine dust apps were providing contents that provide fine dust concentration based on global positioning system (GPS). According to the MARS evaluation, engagement was low in average score, and in aesthetic, the gap between apps was large. The correlation analysis between the scores was not significant. Conclusions: It is necessary to develop differentiated contents such as personal health records and monitoring in order to increase the motivation and sustainability of using the fine dust mHealth app.